ORIGIN AND HISTORY OF THE TEDDY GUINEA PIG

Teddy bears, that is what usually comes to mind when the word Teddy is mentioned. How did this rodent bearing such name (Teddy guinea pig) come about? How did it get its name? What is its history? These questions will form the bases of this article.

The Origin of the its name “Teddy Guinea Pig”

Although not being pigs and not originating from Guinea, ‘Guinea pig’ is the term ascribed to a set of rodents. The origin of this name ‘guinea pigs‘ remains a mystery till date as it is still not proven that guinea pigs originated from Guinea or because it resembles a pig coming from Guinea known as ‘the Guinea Hog’. Another theory speculates that the word Guiana (a South American region) was confused to be Guinea and the name got stuck to the animal, and a different theory concludes that ‘Guinea’ describes an unnamed faraway land. Although, none of these theories have been proved to be true, the name ‘guinea pigs’ remain.

The name ‘Teddy’ is used to describe this particular breed of guinea pigs. Due to its likeness to Teddy bears and stuffed toys, the Teddy guinea pigs derived its name. Its coat is similar to those of Teddy bears and its nose is identical to other toys. It can be described as a living toy.